Waste is generally stored in large, wheeled metal bins referred to as “dumpsters” which are designed to be emptied mechanically by specially equipped garbage trucks having hydraulically-operated lifting arms or forks which engage, lift and tip the dumpster.
Trash bins have one or more hinged lids that can be opened to deposit trash into the bin. The bins are designed to be emptied by a trash truck. A hydraulically operated lift on the truck engages the trash bin using two forks, lifts it above the truck, and inverts the bin. The lids swing open, and the contents of the bin fall into the truck.
The lids of conventional trash bins are mounted on hinges at the rear wall of the bin adjacent the rim of the bin. When the lids are closed, they are oriented generally horizontally and perpendicular to the side walls of the trash bin. The lids can be swung open approximately 270 degrees to an orientation in which they are generally parallel to the rear wall of the trash bin. After a user has opened a lid in this manner and deposited the trash, the opened lid is out of the user's reach, and the user therefore must walk to the rear of the trash bin to close the lid. A user can avoid this inconvenience by holding on to the lid with one hand while depositing trash with the other hand, but this procedure is also inconvenient because a user may desire to use both hands to deposit the trash.
It is important that water be kept out of such containers, since users pay for removal by weight. To avoid becoming filled with rainwater, a lid must be provided for the dumpster which is hinged to permit filling and emptying of the dumpster. Such lids are metal and are generally formed in two parts due to the large weight of such lids. Even so, such lids are difficult for a user to lift and also leak some water into the container. The lids also tend to become bent when dumping into a full garbage truck, as the lid presses against the mound of trash. Such bending adds to the leakage problem in the container. Furthermore, food wastes and numerous other waste materials which are placed in waste containers can attract vermin and insects if the waste material is left exposed. Most constructions of waste containers presently used are provided with lids which do not completely seal the container and some lids are formed with openings at the corners thereof which allow access to the waste within the container thereby also allowing vermin and insects into the container. Such containers are therefore a health risk, particularly when used with food wastes and the like. It is desirable to provide a lid which, when closed, seals the container against the ingress of vermin, flies and the like, but which will not constitute a danger to users of the container. However, such a lid may be difficult for a user to open, especially if the user is carrying packages to be deposited in the dumpster.
As such, one of the difficulties in providing a lid for a waste container is to provide a lid construction such that the lid is relatively easy to open for the insertion of waste material into the container and is relatively easy to close but with the lid construction being sufficiently robust that it is not damaged through mis-use and/or incorrect container emptying procedures. Further, the lid should be constructed to facilitate emptying of the contents by mechanical handling equipment.
Therefore, there is a need for a means to easily open a dumpster lid in a hands-free manner.